John Banwell

John Banwell

John Hugh Banwell of Moorland, Iowa was born May 9th, 1922 in Fort Dodge. He was raised on the Oakdale Dairy Farm west of Fort Dodge. Later he helped operate the family farm with his two sisters and one brother, close to Tara, Iowa, until recently retiring.

John married Leona Vivian Martin in 1952. Together they had four children. Leona had two children from a previous marriage that John adopted at this time.

Farming was just one of John’s many passions. He enjoyed the wild outdoors and made the trek to Canada as often as possible to fish in the wilderness. John was an avid reader. Building model airplanes from a plan had been a hobby of his for many decades. He was also a skilled marksman, who received many medals from trap shooting competitions across the country. Anyone who knew anything about John knew how much he loved all animals, especially his dog Goldie and his cats. One of his greatest passions was traveling around the United States, showing off this great country to his children with every chance he had.

Though John traveled frequently, there was no doubt that his home and his heart was with the rich black soil on the farm west of Fort Dodge.

John passed away on April 29th 2005 at Hamilton Hospital in Webster City, IA.

He was preceded in death by his father; Hugh, his mother Ellen and a daughter, Sharon.

John is survived by; his sister, Margaret Banwell of Moorland; sister, Edith (Toddy) Lucas of Fort Dodge; and brother, William Banwell also of Fort Dodge. Five children, Robin Banwell of Green Valley, AZ; John (Frojon) Banwell of San Diego, CA; Rachel Gilligan of Winona, MN; Rebecca Banwell of St. Paul, MN and Jacqueline Hoffmann of Webster City, IA, 13 Grandchildren and 9 Great Grandchildren.

John’s last wish was that his body would be donated to The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN to assist in medical education.

There will be a memorial service on Wednesday, May 4th at 11:00am at Bruce-Graham Funeral Home in Fort Dodge with Rev. Jack Flaherty officiating.

Bruce-Graham Funeral Home